catch the eye

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catch the eye (third-person singular simple present catches the eye, present participle catching the eye, simple past and past participle caught the eye)

1. (idiomatic) To attract the attention
   • 1951 May, J. Pelham Maitland, “A Memorable Run by a Brighton "Terrier"”, in Railway Magazine, page 347:

     Meantime, the train went on to Brighton without further incident. No small stir was caused by its arrival with No. 61 at its head, resplendent with "East London Line Special" head boards, which at once caught the eye of William Stroudley, who was observing the traffic working from his office window.

   • 2011 January 8, Paul Fletcher, “Stevenage 3 - 1 Newcastle”, in BBC‎:

     Lawrie Wilson caught the eye with a surging run, although his strike was blocked, while Bostwick's powerful low strike drew an excellent save from Krul.

• catch someone's eye
• eye-catching